[TheForge] propane cylinder and tank safety ( was [OT] Pyro-boom )

[terry l. ridder]

hello;

i feel that i need to jump in here concerning cutting propane cylinders
and tanks. several safety points and environmental protection agency
regulations need to be restated.

0. venting propane to the atmosphere is against epa regulations. if a
propane cylinder and or tank has propane in either gas or liquid it must
be burned off using a propane flare. ( think large weed burner on tripod
stand in a vertical position. ) the alternative is to pump the cylinder
or tank empty. the pumping tends to labor intensive so most propane
service companies burn it off.

1. if a cylinder or tank has a value which will not open ( the value has
failed closed ) the procedure to handle this depends on whether it is a
cylinder or tank.
    a cylinder:
        if at all possible the cylinder should be frozen using liquid
nitrogen. once the propane has solidified the value is removed and a new
value is installed. the cylinder is allowed to warmup naturally.
        if the cylinder cannot be frozen and if the failed value has the
screw vent, the screw vent should be opened to allow the cylinder to
vent at a slow rate. remember that propane is heavier than air and
collects in low areas. the venting should be reported to the proper
regulatory agency/agencies.
    a tank:
        if the tank has an emergency unloader value ( most do ). an
unloader adapter is attached allowing liquid propane to be withdrawn.
the unloader value allows for either pumping out to an alternate storage
facility or for the burning off of the propane. the propane flare in
this case has a vaporizer which allows the liquid propane to become
gaseous propane and burned off using the propane flare.
        if the tank has a belly value this is used in place of the
emergency unloader value ( which is normally located on top of the
tank.)

i have worked with propane, propane cylinders and tanks for nearly 35+
years. propane, propane cylinders and tanks need to be respected and
proper safety precautions must be taken. remember the person injuried or
killed may be you. perhaps worst it may be someone else and you have to
live with the guilt of directly or indirectly causing or contributing to
their death. in which case you may be rightful sued for wrongful death
or negligence.


On Sun, 1 Jun 2003, Peter Fels And Phoebe Palmer wrote:

peter> 
peter> Paul;
peter> A while back we had a discussion about cutting open old propane tanks 
peter> and several of us had fairly elaborate precautions we took first.
peter> Clearly you are the expert here...
peter> The text below infers that you just jerk the valves and plugs and cut 
peter> them open straight off...is that right?........Pete
peter> 

Paul Hewitt wrote:
<snip>

paul>
paul> We devalve about 500 to 1000 tanks a day, and typically then
paul> cut holes in them.  The guys with torches usually pride themselves on the
paul> tanks that become "jet engines"  when a tank sits open long enough they get
paul> a perfect mixture and then will burn inside the tanks emitting the hot
paul> exhaust gasses out the hole that's been cut.  After about a 2 to 3 second
paul> interval they burn out, but do not explode the tank.
paul>

<snip>

-- 
Terry L. Ridder ><>